Method and system for controlling robot arm for performing coffee drip

Abstract

A method of controlling a robot arm for performing coffee drip includes: an arrangement checking operation of checking an arrangement of a dripper, a coffee powder container, a cup, and a kettle; a coffee powder providing operation of, when the arrangement of the cup is sensed, gripping the coffee powder container and providing a coffee powder contained in the coffee powder container to the dripper, by using the robot arm; a dripping operation of, when the coffee powder is provided to the dripper, gripping the kettle and performing a drip operation using any one of a plurality of predetermined methods, by using the robot arm; and a discharging operation of, when the dripping operation is completed, gripping the cup and transferring the cup to a discharge position.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A robot arm control system for performing coffee drip, the robot arm control system comprising:
 an arrangement unit configured to arrange a dripper, a coffee powder container, a cup, and a kettle; 
 a sensing unit configured to sense an arrangement of the dripper, the coffee powder container, the cup, and the kettle in the arrangement unit; and 
 a robot arm configured to grip the dripper, the coffee powder container, the cup, or the kettle according to a control signal of a processing unit based on the sensing of the sensing unit, and perform a coffee drip process by performing a dripping operation using one of a plurality of predetermined drip methods stored in a memory unit, 
 wherein the sensing unit is further configured to sense an arrangement in the arrangement unit through at least one of a presence of an object in the arrangement unit and a weight sensing of the object. 
 
     
     
       2. The robot arm control system of  claim 1 , wherein the robot arm is further configured to discharge a coffee powder by rotating the gripped coffee powder container in a vertical direction, and perform an upward and downward motion at least once while gripping the coffee powder container in a rotated state. 
     
     
       3. The robot arm control system of  claim 2 , wherein a downward motion of the upward and downward motion includes a stop motion while the robot arm is accelerated. 
     
     
       4. The robot arm control system of  claim 1 , wherein the robot arm is further configured to simultaneously perform a plurality of coffee drip processes when the cup arranged in the arrangement unit comprises a plurality of cups. 
     
     
       5. The robot arm control system of  claim 1 , wherein the dripping operation comprises:
 a first drip motion of tilting, by the robot arm, the kettle to allow water in the kettle to flow out of the kettle; 
 a second drip motion of performing, by the robot arm, a spiral rotation motion while performing the first drip motion; and 
 a third drip motion of performing, by the robot arm, a circular motion while performing the first drip motion, the circular motion being obtained by combining a first circular motion with a second circular motion, and a diameter of the first circular motion being less than a diameter of the second circular motion. 
 
     
     
       6. The robot arm control system of  claim 1 , further comprising an image capturing unit configured to photograph an inside of the dripper,
 wherein the processing unit is configured to perform image analysis of an image obtained by the photographing of the image capturing unit, and control at least one of a slope at which the robot arm is inclined, a timing at which the robot arm is inclined, and a duration for which the robot arm is inclined, based on analysis of an image in which a coffee powder of the dripper swells. 
 
     
     
       7. A method of controlling a robot arm for performing coffee drip, the method comprising:
 an arrangement checking operation of checking an arrangement of at least one of a dripper, a coffee powder container, a cup, and a kettle; 
 a coffee powder providing operation of gripping the coffee powder container and providing a coffee powder contained in the coffee powder container to the dripper, by using the robot arm; 
 a dripping operation of, when the coffee powder is provided to the dripper, gripping the kettle and performing a drip operation using any one of a plurality of predetermined methods, by using the robot arm; and 
 a discharging operation of, when the dripping operation is completed, gripping the cup and transferring the cup to a discharge position, 
 wherein an arrangement of each of the dripper, the coffee powder container, the cup, and the kettle is sensed through at least one of a presence of an object at an arrangement position and a weight of the object. 
 
     
     
       8. The method of  claim 7 , further comprising a dripper transfer operation, in which the robot arm grips the dripper and transfers the dripper to a dripper arrangement unit,
 wherein the dripper arrangement unit is located vertically above an arrangement unit of the cup. 
 
     
     
       9. The method of  claim 7 , wherein the coffee powder providing operation comprises:
 a first dropping operation of dropping the coffee powder by vertically rotating the coffee powder container gripped by the robot arm; and 
 a second dropping operation, in which the robot arm performs an upward and downward motion at least once in a state in which the robot arm grips the coffee powder container in a rotated state. 
 
     
     
       10. The method of  claim 9 , wherein, in the second dropping operation, a downward motion of the upward and downward motion includes a stop motion in a state in which the robot arm is accelerated. 
     
     
       11. The method of  claim 7 , further comprising a rinsing operation of, when an arrangement of the cup is sensed in an arrangement unit of the cup, gripping, by the robot arm, the kettle and pouring water onto the dripper. 
     
     
       12. The method of  claim 7 , further comprising a grounds removing operation of, when the cup is sensed in the discharge position, gripping, by the robot arm, the dripper, moving the dripper to a predetermined position, and discharging a content in the dripper by rotating the dripper in a vertical direction. 
     
     
       13. The method of  claim 7 , wherein a position at which the dripper, the coffee powder container, and the cup are arranged and discharged at at least one position, and,
 when the cup arranged in the arrangement checking operation comprises a plurality of cups, the robot arm simultaneously performs a plurality of coffee drip processes. 
 
     
     
       14. The method of  claim 7 , wherein the dripping operation comprises:
 a first drip motion of tilting, by the robot arm, the kettle to allow water in the kettle to flow out of the kettle; 
 a second drip motion of performing, by the robot arm, a spiral rotation motion while performing the first drip motion; and 
 a third drip motion of performing, by the robot arm, a rotation motion while performing the first drip motion, the rotation motion being obtained by combining a first circular motion with a second circular motion, and a diameter of the first circular motion being less than a diameter of the second circular motion). 
 
     
     
       15. The method of  claim 14 , wherein the dripping operation comprises:
 an operation of, when a temperature of water in the kettle exceeds 90 degrees, performing, by the robot arm, the second drip motion at least once using at least 35 mL of water and waiting at least 30 seconds; 
 an operation of, when the temperature of the water in the kettle is greater than 86 degrees and less than or equal to 88 degrees, performing, by the robot arm, the second drip motion at least once using at least 120 mL of the water and waiting at least 10 seconds; 
 an operation of, when the temperature of the water in the kettle is greater than 84 degrees and less than or equal to 86 degrees, performing, by the robot arm, the second drip motion at least once using at least 80 mL of the water and waiting at least 10 seconds; and 
 an operation of, when the temperature of the water in the kettle is less than or equal to 84 degrees, performing, by the robot arm, the first drip motion at least once using at least 60 mL of the water. 
 
     
     
       16. The method of  claim 14 , wherein the dripping operation comprises:
 an operation of, when a temperature of water in the kettle exceeds 90 degrees, performing, by the robot arm, the second drip motion at least once using at least 35 mL of water and waiting at least 30 minutes; 
 an operation of, when the temperature of the water in the kettle is greater than 86 degrees and less than or equal to 88 degrees, performing, by the robot arm, the third drip motion at least once using at least 120 mL of the water and waiting at least 10 seconds; 
 an operation of, when the temperature of the water in the kettle is greater than 84 degrees and less than or equal to 86 degrees, performing, by the robot arm, the third drip motion at least once using at least 80 mL of the water and waiting at least 10 seconds; and 
 an operation of, when the temperature of the water in the kettle is less than or equal to 84 degrees, performing, by the robot arm, the first drip motion at least once using at least 60 mL of the water. 
 
     
     
       17. The method of  claim 7 , wherein the dripping operation comprises controlling at least one of a slope at which the robot arm is inclined, a timing at which the robot arm is inclined, and a duration for which the robot arm is inclined, based on analysis of an image in which the coffee powder of the dripper swells. 
     
     
       18. The method of  claim 7 , wherein the gripping of the kettle by the robot arm comprises inserting a handle of the kettle into a groove provided in the robot arm.